Butter the dish and tear the bread. Butter the 9×13-inch baking dish. Tear the day-old bread into rough cubes, about 3 cm across, and pile them loosely in the dish. Stale bread is the point — it drinks up the custard without falling apart.

Whisk the eggs and sugars. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the granulated sugar, brown sugar, vanilla extract, cinnamon and salt until smooth and a little pale.

Warm the milk and cream. Heat the milk and cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until steaming — not boiling. Warm milk soaks into the bread faster than cold milk, and it helps the custard set evenly.

Pour the custard over the bread. Slowly whisk the warm milk and cream into the egg mixture, then pour the custard evenly over the bread in the dish. Press the bread down gently with a spatula so every piece is soaked, and scatter the raisins over the top. Dot with the remaining butter.

Soak for 30 minutes. Let the dish sit for 30 minutes so the bread drinks up the custard. Press the bread down once or twice as it soaks — dry pieces on top stay dry in the oven, and dry bread burns.

Bake. Bake at 175°C (350°F) for 40–45 minutes, until the top is deep golden and puffed and the center is set — a knife inserted in the middle should come out clean, with no runny custard. If the top browns too fast, cover it loosely with foil.

Rest. Let the pudding rest for 10 minutes before serving — it firms up as it cools a little, and it slices cleanly instead of collapsing.

Serve. Serve warm, spooned into bowls, with warm custard sauce poured over or a scoop of vanilla ice cream. The contrast of warm pudding and cold cream is the classic finish.